Health, security and economy are essential things in a nation. Critical infrastructure provides all the services that ensure the economy is great, the nation is safe, and the health sector is working well. In other words, critical infrastructure is what enables a country’s well-being. It determines, how people will move from one place to another, there is water for both domestic and commercial use, electricity and communication systems. Given the importance of critical infrastructure, vulnerabilities are bound to occur hence the need for protection. This paper provides an overview of the nation’s critical infrastructure concerning homeland security and its overall protection.
Evidently, the critical infrastructure is a very vital part of America’s welfare as a nation. It is the backbone of the nation. Any destruction of the critical infrastructure will have a devastating effect on the country’s security and the economy. The nation will suffer literary collapse without critical infrastructure. Homeland security, therefore, has a vital task to protect the nation’s critical infrastructure from any risks concerning the critical infrastructure. It has an IP office whose primary work is to manage risks and enhance security. The infrastructure protection department has programs whose primary aim is to lead the national effort of protecting the critical infrastructure (Homeland security, 2016). The critical infrastructure community together with the critical infrastructure security and resilience month are some of the programs to ensure the resilience of America’s critical infrastructure.
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The specific resources to offer security to critical infrastructure exist in Homeland security. Homeland Security provides resources to both the private sector and the government to ensure resilience in the mission to ensure security in critical infrastructure. The resources are grouped into cross-sector resources which entail bombing protection, effective sector preparedness, suspicious activity reporting tool among others. Other resources include the sector specific resources and assessment resources (Homeland security, 2017).
With all the initiatives put in place, the critical infrastructure has been able to thrive against all the odds. Homeland security and homeland defense are doing a great job of protecting critical infrastructure. The resources put in place cover a wide area which ensures that everything is covered. Homeland security does not only involve the government in providing security to the critical infrastructure but the citizens as well. Apparently, the efforts to ensuring security have been active.
Nevertheless, there still exist vulnerabilities in the protection of critical infrastructure. Every day there exists an issue that is threatening to the well-being of the backbone of our nation. Cyber-attacks and physical attacks have to be dealt with daily. The attacks are always aimed at destroying the country’s economy which in turn will destroy the overall infrastructure. In a society that everything is becoming digital, cyber security has brought much concern to homeland security. In most situations, physical attacks are linked to cyber-attacks (Lantrip, 2016). Therefore the only way that the government can deal with such vulnerabilities is ensuring prevention and preparedness in case of an attack. Addressing the issue will entail preparing to deal with such issues adequately, putting security measures to avert the attacks and reducing the cost of providing security so that the private sector can protect itself.
Each year the threats to infrastructure are always evolving. The measures to ensure the safety should also develop to make sure adequate security is provided. The homeland security is currently putting considerable efforts to ensure critical infrastructure is protected. Now the American infrastructure has survived all its threats. Its current state is a good sign that the economy security and health of the nation is well-taken care. To a citizen, the infrastructure is serving a useful purpose as people travel, use water and energy without much hustle. Nevertheless, the government never rests hence critical infrastructure is always protected.
References
Homeland security. (2016). What is critical infrastructure? Retrieved from http://www.dhs.gov
Homeland security. (2017). Critical infrastructure resources? Retrieved from http://www.dhs.gov
Lantrip, J. (2016). Common threats and vulnerabilities of critical infrastructure. Retrieved from http://www.securityinfowatch.com
